What Habits Should You Be Tracking?
So recently Habit Tracking has become extremely popular. There are a lot of apps for it, and things like keeping a Bullet Journal really encourage the idea of tracking habits. I recently read Atomic Habits by James Clear. Which is a fantastic read on the science behind building habits.
He of course delves into the idea of tracking habits and discusses the power of doing so. However, in terms of what habits we should track, I think thats where things get interesting. I don’t think its practical for anyone to be tracking every single thing that happens throughout their day.
Our days are made up of 100’s of habits, so when it comes to which ones you want to keep track of, I really recommend you boil it down to a few key things that are going to have the biggest impact of your life. In helping you figure out what these three things might be, here are a couple of categories of habits for you to consider.
- Something you love to do, but never do enough
- Something that is good for you - Either physically, emotionally or spiritually
- Something that is for someone else
Something you love to do, but never do enough
For me personally this was playing the guitar. I get a huge amount of joy and pleasure from playing, but seldom do I make the time to do it. In fact more often than not, I am reminded that I haven’t played when someone I know asks “hows the guitar playing going?”
In this moment I usually respond the same way “oh yer, I haven’t really played much recently, but I need to pick it back up” usually followed by me going home and playing the guitar. It's something that I should draw more personal attention to, knowing how much joy I get from doing it.
Something that is good for you
This might be something really simple like drinking enough water, or going to the gym. But it could also be visiting your place of worship, or taking time to journal/meditate. These are activities that have been shown to be good for our mind, body and spirit.
If you know you tend to neglect your body, then habit tracking can be a great way of insuring you regularly check in with the things you know you should be doing to take care of it. You might not struggle with healthy eating, but really struggle with getting out the door to go for a run. So thats what needs to be tracked.
Something that is for someone else
This one has had a dramatic impact on me, and it's not usually the first thing you think of when we talk about habit tracking. But making an intentional decision to use some of your time and energy for others is such a rewarding experience. To personalise this, I make sure I track how often I do something ‘nice’ for my wife. This might be buying her flowers, or her favourite chocolate. A small gesture, which of course brings her pleasure. But equally importantly, brings me joy and satisfaction. At the same time, it's me constantly making sure I’m working on and looking after the quality of my relationship.
It’s very easy for us to get self involved, especially when it comes to SELF development. But a huge part of that is our relationships, so tracking and caring for them is an important part of looking after ourselves.
Remember, whether you choose to track habits or not. Our life is made up of tiny micro decisions every single day. Adjust your habits to fit with the life you want to live for yourself and you should be just fine.
